Under the Gaslight

Having a one-armed man tied to the railroad tracks was the original sensation of Augustin Daly's 1867 melodrama "Under the Gaslight," so much so that Daly attempted to copyright the device. But it was to be repeated by subsequent dramatists and early filmmakers; in fact, the bound body on the tracks became the cliché signifying the extremes of melodrama. It has left been left to the Metropolitan Playhouse, whose commendable mission is to excavate America's theatrical heritage, to show contemporary New Yorkers that Daly's first hit play has much more meat on its melodramatic bones than the sum of its excesses. While being a fast-paced yarn, it also provides a surprisingly intriguing picture of post–Civil War New York. Yes, the colors are heightened, but it still imprints the contradictions and dangers of 1867 society in Dickensian detail. And the good news is that in this production, under the astute direction of Michael Hardart, the history is the underpinning of a rollicking roller coaster of a tale that Hardart and his hard-working company deliver as a bundle of fun, a holiday gift for New York.

At center stage is a boater-wearing piano man (Ralph Petrarca) who plays a musical accompaniment to the action throughout as we watch the fortunes of our lovely heroine, Laura Courtland (Amanda Jones). Laura discovers on the eve of her marriage to young Civil War veteran Ray Trafford (Justin Flagg) that she, as a child, was taken from the streets. When her secret past is exposed, she is rejected by society and hides out in New York's lower depths, pursued by Byke (J.M. McDonough), the villain of the piece, and her fiancé. The action ranges in New York from Delmonico's to the Tombs, while in New Jersey there are Long Branch and those dreaded train tracks at Shrewsbury Bend.

All this is contained on the Metropolitan Playhouse's small playing space. Hardart's true achievement, however, is making his production confidently walk the knife edge between sincerity and send-up. The performance is filled with small directorial touches that affectionately morph the play's melodrama into humor. Jones' steadfast rendering of Laura supplies the sincerity: She takes a couple of the play's purple passages and makes them sound totally convincing. Indeed, Jones is a handsome actor who has a quality uncommon among younger American performers: an innate sense of the period she is playing in. Brad Fraizer is able to make the one-armed Snorkey both comic and touching, while in the busy company that doubles and triples, Lian-Marie Holmes' perky Blossom and Richard Cottrell's kindly signalman are especially authentic.

Presented by and at the Metropolitan Playhouse, 220 E. Fourth St., NYC. Nov. 28–Dec. 19. Thu.–Sat., 8 p.m.; Sat. and Sun., 3 p.m. (No performance Sat., Dec. 5, 3 p.m.) (212) 995-5302 or www.metropolitanplayhouse.org.